Review: Kids on the Slope (Sakamichi no Apollon)

I wrote a preview for this series earlier. You can read it here.

Kids on the Slope is a much antecipated anime because it's the first time Yoko Kanno and Shinichiro Watanabe work together since the famous Cowboy Bebop. Let's start with the synopsis from wikipedia:

The beginning of summer, 1966. Because of his father's job situation, freshman high school student Kaoru Nishimi moves by himself from Yokosuka to Kyushu to live with relatives. Until then, Kaoru was an honor roll student who tended to keep to himself, but meeting notorious bad boy Sentaro Kawabuchi starts to change him. Through his devil-may-care classmate, Kaoru learns the attractions of jazz and finds the first person he can call a “friend.” He also discovers how much fun it is to play music with a pal. Other characters include Sentaro's kind childhood chum, Ritsuko, who is the daughter of a record shop owner; the mysterious upperclassman, Yurika; and Brother Jun, the much-admired leader among their peers.

Review: Hikounin Sentai Akibaranger

 

I wrote a preview for this series. Check it out here


Unofficial Sentai Akibaranger is Toei's official Super Sentai Parody. It's written, directed and produced by people that actually work in Super Sentai series. And it's aimed at adults, so, as they say at the end, good kids shouldn't watch it. Synopsis from The Morphing Grid:


Akibaranger tells the story of three people being part of an otaku club and living in the new "Electric-Town" Akihabara. They have to fight a mysterious malevolent entity that swore to conquer Earth with cool gadgets created by a brilliant genius. However, the Akibarangers' ultimate goal is to become an "official" sentai team. The Akibaranger's secret base/hideout is a "Sentai Cafe," a Super Sentai version of the popular maid cafe in Japan.

Review: Saint Seiya

When it comes to anime, Saint Seiya (SS) was teh 1st big hit in Brazil. The anime conquered a huge fan base and  had lots of merchandise sold. 18 years after the 1st exibition and less than 10 after the manga arrived, there isa lot of controversy about this series. And I don't mean fans x haters. Yes, there are haters, who tend to ahte things they don't read or watch. But what's interesting is what happens with people that have read or watched it when they were kids and have rewatched it now. Since this might also happen in other countries in which SS was a hit in the 90's, I decided to also write this in  the english version of the post.

Review: Redline

I'll start with a slightly edited version of wikipedia's synopsis:

"Sweet JP" - rightfully named for his personality, retro style, and refusal to mount weapons on his racecar - nearly wins the "Yellowline" race against a host of semi-pro alien drivers, most of whom use oversized vehicles with jet engines mounted with guns and missiles, but just before the finish line JP's car is sabotaged by an explosive device placed by his friend and mechanic; Frisbee. In the past, Frisbee and JP were sent to prison for fixing races for the mafia, and are doing so again so they can keep racing. While recuperating in the hospital and reminiscing over his loss, JP finds out that he was selected for the "Redline" despite not qualifying in the last race due to popular demand, and because 2 racers withdrew, since the Redline race takes place on Roboworld, a militarized planet ruled by cyborgs. The Roboworld government is violently opposed to the race being held on their planet as they have several ongoing secret projects. JP and the other racers are transported to a backwater moon near Roboworld to prepare. There he meets female racer Sonoshee the winner of the Yellowline and several oddball racers, while he repairs his car and prepares for the race.

Review: Cowboy Bebop

 

The anime takes place in 2071. Mankind has created a portal system that allows faster than light interstellar travels and colonized the solar system. We follow Spike Spiegel and Jet Black, two bounty hunters (called cowboys in this setting) that go after wanted criminals in their ship, Bebop. During their adventures, Ein, an intelligent dor, Faye Valentine, a female bounty hunter and Ed, a female hacker join their team.